Skylar Staples is an ASU Cronkite School of Journalism student assigned to cover Mesa High School for AZPreps365.com.

The world of girls' high school sports is a space where many young women find the inner confidence and drive needed to thrive as adults.

Katie Fonseca is a coach who cultivates confidence and poise within the girls badminton club at Mesa High School.

A physical education teacher and basketball coach, Fonseca has led the club for the past few years.

She's taught at Mesa for six years and has used that time to shape the drive and spirit of many women within the sport. She has also grown the team immensely in skill and size. 

“I do feel like they are competing a lot harder this year," Coach Fonseca said. "They are competing for every point this year as opposed to last year. Sometimes last year they would say ‘Oh that’s ok. That’s ok if I don’t hit the birdie back or if I lose the point.' But now you can tell that they are thinking that they can’t let that happen. I do feel like I have changed their mindsets into more of a competitive nature.”

Many of Fonseca’s athletes also believe she has changed their focus and approach to life’s issues. 

“She shaped my mindset in a more of a competition way," said Denise Garcia, a senior on varsity badminton. "I feel like with badminton, she motivated me into competing more and also in life too. The motivation that she has taught us  makes me want to compete and fight with it. She talks about ‘mind over power,’ which means you just have to fight through it. I’m like that’s right.” 

Fonseca’s preachings have also been applied into some of her athletes' lives. 

“I  put it into my school work because I used to  struggle with it and I  always  procrastinate with everything and now I just think I have to push through and do it,” Garcia said. 

Badminton has been a functioning club at the school for many years. Badminton is a smaller sport that is not typically seen at a competitive level, but is available at most area 6A schools. 

“We’ve had a team for the last 12-15  years," Fonseca said. "There are some schools that don’t have a team but a majority of the schools are able to field a full varsity squad at least.”

Fonseca stepped up to the head coach role after the previous coach, Mary Anne Steigle, retired.

There was no one else to fill the role. So Fonseca  took the job.

“The coach before her told me I should try out but then she retired the year I came. I stayed because I knew Fonseca would be the coach,” Betts said.

Fonseca has expanded the club and made it a place for women to excel both athletically and mentally. 

“There were quite a few girls that already knew the basics that were returners that already had experience," Fonseca said. "We have a senior that has been playing for three and a half  years, so she came in with a lot of knowledge. We have  been refining the older kids. The newer kids like our freshman and sophomores we did start  with the basics, like how to serve and how to hold a racquet. It is all different ranges that we are being taught.” 

Badminton is a fairly uncommon sport in high school that can be seen as uncharted territory for many athletes trying out.

The interest for many young women is strong. It is just a matter of sustaining that interest through coaching and games. 

“We haven’t done badminton in P.E. We are trying to do that in the spring this year to get them interested," Fonseca said. "We do have badminton camp over the summer and then we just put it on the announcements. It’s a lot of word and mouth.” 

Many athletes tried out for badminton and had a completely different opinion about the sport after being coached by Fonseca. 

“I started  playing badminton last school season about two years ago," said  Audrey Betts, a junior on the badminton team. "Fonseca shaped my opinion of the sport for the better. She’s definitely changed the way  I used to think about it. I used to think it was a pitter-patter sport but now I see it as more intense. There are a lot of things you need to know and things you need to be working on technique wise. It’s really interesting.”  

In her time as coach, Fonseca has shaped expectations for the sport as well as the girls' expectations for themselves. The competitive nature and the drive that is instilled in the very heart of badminton has created an environment for a smaller club sport to make a monumental change in the futures of Mesa athletes. 

Although she did not intend to be a badminton coach in her teaching  career; Fonseca has left a permanent mark on both the lives of athletes and badminton within Mesa.